Valve



April 7, 1931- w. G. WILSON 1,800,127

VALVE Filed Jan. 25, 19,26 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 W y lgyVE/NTOR. /e 5'0 BY A TTORNE Yf,

April 1931- w. G. WILSON 1,800,127

VALVE Filed Jan. 25 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYL Patented Apr. 7, 1931 {UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 WYLIE G. WILSON, OF JERSEY CITY, NE-VJ JERSEY, ASSIGNOR T TNILSON RINGS COM- PANY, 0F JERSEY CITY, NEXV JERSEY, A CORPGIEATIGN 01? NEW JERSEY VALVE Application filed January 25, 1920. Serial No. 83,416. i

This invention is a valve adapted for gen eral application.

In the valve art, it is of fundamental importancethat the seal effected by the valve be a tight seal and that the valve be capable of functioning a great number of times without becoming leaky, i. e., it should be re )etitive in character, while retaining its capacity to prodiuce a tight seal. lVhile this desideratum has long been recognized, no construction has been heretofore produced ,WlllCll fully meets the requirements.

Pursuant to the practices of the prior art, valve seals have been formed by bringing a rigid sealing element into engagement with a rigid seat, or by forming one of these elements of material which is permanently deformedor distorted in producing the seal, or by interposing a gasket, composed of permanently deformable material, intermediate the sealing element and its seat. I11 the first in stance, diiiiculties are encountered in accomplishing a tight seal because of irregularities in the two surfaces incident to their construction,.to wear, to the presence of foreign matter between them, or to other causes. In the second and third instances, thedeformable bodies very. soon become so permanently distorted, as a result of wear, physical deterioration or other cause, that they can no longer produce a tiglitlseal. In all the prior art structures, frequent inspection and repairs, at

very considerable annoyance and expense, are

necessary in order to maintain tight valves. FVith these considerations in mind, the primary object of the present invention is to provide avalve capable of effecting a tight seal throughout long periods of repetitive use and under operating conditions, whereunder the valves ofcthe prior art become ineffective after a relative short period.

wAnotherobjeot of the invention is to so constitutethe sealing element or elements and so operate them, that they may be constructed economically and without that refined workmanship which is usually incident to the grinding of valves and valve seats so that they will cooperate perfectly. The present structures are such that, even though in their 'pri-niary manufacture they may not be axially obdurate materials.

co-incident with relation to each other or of truly complementary shape, yet in the opera tion of the valve, they will adjust themselves to such irregularities and compensate for the same by reason of the material from which they are manufactured and the particular form employed in this connection.

Speaking generally, the valve of this invention embodies a sealing element in the form of a hollow cone or frustrum of ahollow cone, and I have discovered that these forms will function with remarkable oiliciency in the formation of a tight repetitive seal, when constituted from materials which, for the purpose of this invention, are termed By this term is meant materials which are bendable, but not easily bent, compressible, but not easily compressed, elastic,but not easily deformed. As examples of obdurate materials, I may mention, without excluding others, iron, steel, hard alloys (such as bronze), glass, ceramic materials, hard rubber, and wood. 'lfhese materials are in pronounced contradistinction to those, which may be termed non-obdurate, such as leather, asbestos, soft rubber, sojft metals, etc. i i

As previously stated, the valve of this invention embodies a sealing element in the form of a hollow cone or frustum of a hollow cone, and it contemplates that such cone or frustum of a cone shall be formed of what is characterized as obdurate materiali. It is also contemplated that said obdurate material shall be employed in such mass or thickness in relation to its length between supports or abutments as to present a resistance to axial compression which shallbe sufiiciently pronounced to'presont to any power that ma y be utilized to compress the same axially a re sistance which shallbe such as to make it impossible or impractical to compress the same beyond its elastic limit by the means employed to exercise axial compression on the said conical form. i i

The obdurate materials, when employed pursuant to this invention, are operatedwithin theirelastic limit, by which I mean that, when embodied in the form of a sealing element and placedunder stresses which tendto Ill deform said element, incident to producing a seal, the element shall retain a positive tendency to resume its original form when to expand cross axially and its inner periphery will tend to cross axially contract to bring both of said peripheries into engagement with suitable cooperating seats or abutment-s for the purpose of producing a tight seal. Unbroken, as used above, maybedefined as peripherally continuous; i. e., not slotted or formedinto fingers.

By. a hollow cone, I mean a cone which is hollowed out to provide a conical shell.

By a hollow frusto conical section, I mean a frusto conical section which is hollowed out to provide a frusto conical shell. By axial compression, I mean pressure exertedfupon the sealing element in a direction coaxial with or parallel to its axis, whereby its altitude is diminished and the peripheral diameter of its base increased;

Attention is particularly directed to the fact that the stressing of the sealing element or elements must be; within the elastic limit thereof; otherwise, said element would notv tend to resume (i. e., tend to spring back to) its normal unsealing form. Only an element in the sense of this invetnion composed of obdurate material and of substantially ho l low conical or frusto conicalconfiguration will thus properly function. e

' The term elastic limit as employed in the specification and claims of this application is so employed to'designate that quality or characteristic of the conical forms of 0bdurate materialemployed which, when compressed within predetermined limits and then relieved of such compression, will cause said tive characteristic of said conical form will not be seriously affected.

For a better understanding of the operation of the hollow conical and frusto conical forms of this invention, it is suggested that they function like a toggle. This analogy is, of course, not absolute, but when considered in that light, it may be helpful to a clearer conception of the operation of the invention. When force is applied to the elbow of a toggle, a greater force is exerted at the ends of the toggle links, and this force increases in proportion as the axial dimension of the toggle, relative to the distance between the ends of the links, becomes less and less. I

The sealing element of the present. invention may be considered as functioning like a multiplicity of toggles; that is to say, there is a toggle-like action in each diametric plane,

. and, obviously, there is an infinite number of toggles. When the sealing or locking element is compressed axially, the dimensions of such element and the proportioning ofthe obdurate material of which it is. composed, bring about, within the element, the steadily increasing functional characteristics incidental to toggle action. This action results in a cross axial'or radial movement of the scribed, before the elastic limit of the element is reached. "Accordingly, upon release of the stresses incident to producing the seal, the element tends to autogenously, i. e., automatically, break the seal It therefore follows that,.in"a valve enr bodying this invention, the seal is effected by stressing a sealingtelementof obdurate material within its elastic limits and that the seal is maintained as long as the element is thus stressed. However, when these stresses are relieved the seal is broken.

A further featureofthis invention resides in making the seat of the conical sealing element of such conformation thata sealing edge contact is provided at the outer peripheral;

edge of the sealing element, and the seat is formed with a gradually.decreasing cross-section in the direction of the sealing movement.

After many repetitions of the sealing operation, the seat may'become worn by reason of the line contact of the sealing element, in which event a sealing element of the same construction but of different basediameter may be substituted so as to make another-and different line contact with 'said conical seat, orm

another conical seat may replace the one'so affected.

Features of the invention, other than those specified, will be apparent from the hereinafter' detailed'description and'claims, when read injconjunction with the accompanying ierent practical embodiments of the invention, but the constructions therein. shown are to understood asillustrative, only, and not as limiting. Figure 1 is a section through a valve embodying the seal of the presentinvention,

showing the parts in sealedrelat'ion.

Figure 2 is afragmentary corresponding section, showing the seal in the partly raised 3 and open position.

Figure 1s a section through another form otthe valve.

. Referring tirst to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings, 1 designatesa valve caslng having a partition or diaphragm 2 1n which is formed a port opening 3. The opening 3 is threaded .to receive a complementarily threaded seat ring l, through which there is a coaxial passage, the wall f of which constitutes the valve seat. This seat may be of various shapes, but is preferably tapered or frusto conical clearly shown in l the drawings. It Wlll be noted that the seat ring is provided with a radially extending flange 6 which bears upon a gasket 7 for the purpose of forming a tight joint with the diaphragm of the valve.

The valve casing is provided with a suitable bonnet 8 through which is threaded a valve stem 9, a gland 10 serving to preclude leakage. To the upper end of the valve stem is secured a suitable hand wheel 11, while at the lower end of such stem an enlargement 12 is tornie The enlargement projects into a pocket in the spindle 15 of the valve and is held in place therein by means of the lockingjring 16 which has threaded engagement with the spindle.

Carried by the spindle 15 and joined thereto by an intermediate neck 17 of reduced cross section is the sealing element 18 of the valve.

The sealing element 18 is of obdurate material and is of hollow conical configuration. It is of a diameter adapting it to enter, but not pass through the passage in the seat ring, so that by the manipulating of the hand wheel, the sealing element may be moved from the unsealing position of Figure 2 to the sealing position of Figure 1 and vice versa. As previously stated, the sealing element 18 may be formed with a peripheral surface parallel with the seat 5, but a preferred form of construction is to form such surface at an angle to the surface of the seat 5, thus producing a line contact betweenthe sealing elelllQIltEtllCl its seat as illustrated.

I have found, as previously stated, that if a hollow conical structure of ohdurat-e material'is brought into engagement with a remary importance.

lowered from the position otFigure 2 into the posit in of Figure 1, to bring its outer periphery into engagement with the seat '5, the application of axial force to said element will cause the periphery thereof to tightly engage said seat. Thus, when the valve stem is screwed down, the seat forms an abutment acting to preclude downward movement of the sealing element, so that when pressure applied through the valve stem, the sealing:

element will be compressed axially to expand.

its peripheryto form a tight seal with the seat Being of hollow conical construction and of: obdurate material, this operation will stress the sealing element and as long as the pressure of the stem is maintained, these stresses will continue and the sealwill re main tight. lthowever, the stem is rotated in a retrograde direction to relieve the stresses referred to, the sealing element will;

because of its ohduraey, return or tend to return to its normal unsealing form, and in so doing-will break the seal autogenously, i. e., of itself, as soon as the pressure ot the stem is relieved.

i It is of marked practical importance-that the seal effected, while stressing the sealing element within its elastiolimits, so that the tendency of the sealing element to resume or by machining the f-ealiugelement and the seat as is usual in the art without heretofore deemed essential.

In accordance with this invention, a tight seal results from the coordinating action of the outer periphery of the sealing element and the surface of the seat, due to the outward spreading or expansion of the sealing element hereinbefore described.

Practice has further demonstrated that even though the seat or the sealing element be slightly out of round, a tight sealuinaynevertheless be effected by the construction of this invention. i q

The tendency of the uouical or ii'rusto couia1 sealing elements of obdurate naterialte autogenously return or tend to returnto. their .original forms after compression is of pri- As previously stated, such retraction does not ,necessa ily involve a a the grinding return of the sealing elenient to exactly the same form, but to approKimately that same form whenconsidered from a practical standpoint. Such a tendency to r eturn or spring ba k sp ifi the pr ctical requiremen s of the present i -mention. The rest meat quality of the obdurate material from which the hollow conical or frusto conical element is made lends itself to repeated action and reaction through an extended periodof operation.

:The foregoing detailed description sets forth the invention in its preferred practical forms and the invention is to be understood "as fully commensurate with the appended claims.

In the claims, the expression conical sece tion is to begiven a sufficiently broad interpretation to include all of the forms of the invention herein referred to;

.Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: r 1

1. In a valve, a valve casing, and a conical seat within said'casing, in combination with a sealing element comprisinga hollow conical'section of metal bendable-but not'easily deformed and resilient under axial compression and relief fromsuch compression, said seal ng element having a cylindrical peripheral edge coaxial with the sealing element,

whereby the sealing element is adapted to engage with the conical seat in a line contact,

and operating means for axially moving the sealing element into and out of'engagement with the seat and for axially compressing the sealing element while in engagement with the seat. I r

2. In a valve, a valve casing, and a conical seat detachably secured within said casing.

and adapted to be removed from the casing for resurfacing, 1n combinatlon with a sealing element comprising a hollow conical section of metal bendable butnot easily deformed and resilient under axial compression and relief from such compression, said sealing element'having a cylindrical peripheral edge coaxial with the sealing element, whereby the sealing element is adapted to engage with the conical seat in a line contact, and

operating means for axially moving the sealing element'into and outof engagement with the seat and for axially compressing the sealing element while in engagement with the seat, sald sealing element being removably secured to the operating means.

3. In a valve, a valve casing, and a conical seat within said casing, in combination with a sealing element comprising a hollow conical section of metal bendable but not easily deformed and resilient under axial compression and relief from such compression, said sealing element having a cylindrical peripheral edge coaxial with the sealing element, whereby the sealing element is adapted to en-' gage with the conical seat in a line contact, and operating meansfor axially moving the sealing element into and out of engagement "with the seat and for axially compressing the sealing element while in engagement with central aperture having a cylindrical wall eo-axial with the sealing element, and operatlng means, including in part a stem fitting wltlnn sald aperture, for axially moving the sealing element into and out of engagement with the seat and for axially compressing the sealing element while in engagement with the seat,an edge of said aperture wall making a sealing grip with said stem when the element is axially'co'mpressed, said sealing element being removably secured to the operating means.

Signed by me at Jersey City, N. J., this 29 day of December, 1925. v

, WYLIE G. WILSON.

the seat, said sea-ling element being removably secured to the operating means. 

